Window blind



March 11, 1941- P. H. DOUGHERTY 2,234,399

wINnow BLIND Filed Feb. 28. `1959 Patented 'Mai'. 1l, 1941 UNITI-:D STATES PATENT OFFICE WINDOW BLIND Patrick H. Dougherty, Waynesboro, Va. Application February 28, 1939, Serial No. 258,977 8 Claims. (Cl. 156-17) This invention relates to the art of window shades or blinds and particularly pertains to an improved Venetian blind in which the individual slats thereof are enveloped in readily removable covers comprised of glossy, flexible, non-fibrous sheeting or film.

One object of the present invention is to make Venetian blinds more available to the general public by making their actual use less expensive. Another object is to increase the artistic attractiveness of Venetian blinds now on the market. Another object is to prolong the time in which Venetian blinds may be kept serviceable and attractive. Another object is to produce a Venetian blind which has less tendency to become dirty and which may -be more readily cleaned. A specific object of the invention is to furnish Venetian blinds that may be cheaply and readily renovated in accordance with the changing whims and fancies of the particular individual. A more specic object of the invention is to provide for the slats of Venetian blinds cheap, attractive covers which are so inexpensive they maybe discarded and replaced with new covers to secure new ornamental effects as frequently as one may desire.'

According to my .present invention the individual slats of Venetian blinds are provided with a snug, smooth flttingVcover or wrapper made froom glossy, flexible, non-fibrous, sheeting or lm, such as ethyl cellulose or rubber hydrochloride sheeting or film.

In order to set forth clearly the present invention, reference is made to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein Fig. 1 is a front perspective view of. a Venetian blind supported from the frame of a window.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1 of an individual slat enveloped in a lm cover.

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken .on line 3 3 of Fig. 2 and showing the individual slat enveloped in a film cover consisting essentially of a one place film sleeve.

Fig. 4 is a perspective View .taken on 1ine'2 2 of Fig. 1 in the modification of the invention wherein the individual slat is enveloped in a film cover consisting essentially of three separate film sleeves.

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view taken on line 5 5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional view taken on line 5 5 of Fig. 4 in a modification of the invention wherein the slat is enveloped in a film cover conwooden member, 5 is an upper swing board supported in the bracket members, 6 and I are front tape bands which together with rear tape bands (not shown) are attached to the upper swing board and extend vertically the length of the Venetian blind and are all fastened to the lower swing board 8. Each slat 9 is held in spaced relation by horizontally extending strings or tapes (not shown) attached to the front tape bands 6 and 'I and the corresponding rear tape bands. I0 and II are cords passed down through the perforations I2 and I3 in the slat members and fastened to the lower swing board, I4 is a slat lifting and lowering cordacting in conjunction with cords I2 and I3 through a standard pulley and runway (not shown) housed in member 2. I5 is a cord used to tilt the upper swing board and thereby rthe slats beneath to admit the desired amount of light.I

Referring to the remaining figures, I6 is a one piece lm sleeve provided with two perforations corresponding substantially to the ,same shape and size as the perforations I2 and I3 in the slat member; I i, .18, I9, and are film sleeves, and 2| is a bonded joint of film to Illm.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention, a glossy, flexible, durable, non-fibrous, at least somewhat elastic film or sheeting, such as ethyl cellulose or rubber hydrochloride ones, is made in the form of a hollow ribbon or tube of the desired dimensions required for the slat to be covered. The resulting one piece sleeve I6 is drawn over the slat 9 so as to cover substantially the entire surface thereof smoothly and snugly. Two perforations, substantially coinciding with the size and shape of the perforations I'2 and I3, are stamped in the sleeve cover at any suitable stage in the operations to provide for the passage of the slat lifting cords I0 and II. The readily removable sleeve IB is preferably given a slippery fin-ish on the side directly contacting the slat member to facilitate putting on the cover as well as subsequent removal at any time from the slat. Rubber hydrochloride and like elastic films are particularly suitable for the purpose of the invention since such film covers may be slightly stretched in putting them on the slats without setting up excessive strains, hence may be more readily used 2 A 2,as4,soe

to give the snug smooth nt necessary to an attractive appearance. A commercially suitable manner of manufacturing the cover consists of forming a tube of rubber hydrochloride of considerable length, partially ilattening or collapsing the tube, and cutting the partially flattened tube into sections corresponding in length to the slats to be covered.

In cases wherein the cover is made of a film materialinherenftly lacking tear resistance and incapable of being perforated even with a heat sealing die without creating a definite weakness, the film cover is preferably made in a plurality of sleeve sections as shown in Fig. 4.

Another method of providing the slat with a film cover is to wrap a sheet of transparent nlm snugly around substantially the entire surface of the slat other than any small openings .provided for passage of cords necessary in raising and lowering the slats of the'blind. The free end edge of the wrapping is sealed, depending upon the base material of the film, withheat and/or pressure and/or suitable adhesive to the layer of nlm immediately beneath so as to present a smooth, strong bond as shown at 2| in Fig. 6. The film cover thus completed, encases smoothly and substantially precisely the contour of the slat. Any number of adhesives may be employed to make the necessary smooth bond; a generally useful composition being one, consisting essentially of a nlm-forming substance contained in a solvent and a suitable non-solvent diluent.

Still other ways of providing the film covers of the invention will be obvious to technicians, thus in the case of rubber hydrochloride and like films, the nlm sheet may be folded into the form of a wrapper of the required dimensions and the free end edge sewed to the body of the` wrapper to give the desired cover.

Regardless of the manner in which the cover is made, one may either attach the cover firmly to the slat or may rely entirely on a snug nt to hold the cover mechanically in place. ably, however, the film cover is kept in a detachable condition to increase the flexibility permitted in renovating and changing the appearance of the Venetian blinds. The thickness of the nlm cover depends largely on the severity of conditions to which the Venetian blind is likely to be subjected. Thus, under mild to moderate conditions, one

. layer of .0005" film is perfectly satisfactory particularly if the illm is a durable one and the slat has no glaring defects to be covered; whereas under harsh conditions, more than one layer of nlm having a thickness greater than .001 may be necessary.

The vsheeting or film employed for the cover is preferably one which is adaptable to give a snug flt without setting up a strained condition leading to warpage of the slats or breakage of the film. Thus in place of ethyl cellulose or rubber hydrochloride, regenerated cellulose or` a moistureproofed regenerated cellulose film or sheeting of a suitable type may be substituted quite successfully. Or, if desired, a sheeting or film of benzyl cellulose, cellulose acetate, or cellulose acetopropionate of suitable characteristics may be employed. Likewise one may use for the purpose films made from vinyl resins, such as acetal and/ or ester derivatives of polyvinyl alcohol, certain interpolymers of vinyl chloride and vinyl acetate, or films made from polyamide resins.

The films or sheetings are preferably transparent and colored, but they may be used in an uncolored condition if desired. Likewise the films Preferor sheetings may be pigmented with titanium dioxide, Prussian Blue, Monastral Fast Blue GS, Monastral Fast Blue BSN, Red Ochre, Chrome Yellow, etc. If the nlm is colored with dyes, a dye is preferably selected that is fast to light and water and that has a natural ailinity for the base material of the film. In certain cases, such as in using rubber hydrochloride or vinyl acetatevinyl chloride interpolymers, it is desirable to have present a small amount of mildly alkaline stabilizing agent. In certain cases, such as celluloseL acetate illm, it is desirable to apply to the surface of the film a slip and/or an antistatic agent, such' as stearic acid. In most cases, plasticizers should also be incorporated in the illms, particularly those made'from cellulose derivatives.

The slats of the Venetian blinds are commonly made of lightweight wood. However they may be fashioned from various other materials, such as pressed cardboard'stiffened rubber, vulcanizedl `ilber board, materials generically denoted as plastics, aluminum, or other lightweight metals.

The strings and tape bands employed in making Venetian blinds may be replaced by any suitable supporting means accomplishing the same objective; any number of which will suggest themselves to those familiar with the art. The tape bands, for instance, may be made of any suitable material which 4resists excessive elongation upon continued usage. 'Ihus the tapes may be made from highv strength regenerated cellulose yarn having an elongation of the order of 10% and a tenacity greater than 2.5 g. p. d. Or if desired, the same may be made of high tenacity regenerated cellulose lm or the like.

The snug ntting, glossy illm cover provided by the present invention, enables the production of an unusually large number of pleasing artistic ef: fects while making use of Venetian blinds now on the market. drab room may be made quite cheerful and attractive by using Venetian blinds .in which the slats are enveloped in blue film covers which re- :iiect a bluish tone or tinge to the room. Breakfast nooks are made more cheerful by equipping the windows thereof with Venetian blinds in which the slats are encased in beautiful brilliant red nlm covers. Likewise childrens nurseries may be ornamentedwith Venetian blinds in which the slats are enveloped with film covers which are colored red, green, blue, or any desired shade or mixtures of shades, or vhave thereon pictures of characters taken from Mother Goose tales, comics, and history. The improved Venetian blinds doubtlessly will find valuable utility in securing novel theatrical eil'ects and in beautifying a great many other places than the home, such as oillces, stores, hotel rooms, etc. Besides many artistic effects obtainable by the use of the iilm covers of the present inventiqn, the resulting Venetian blinds have the advantages of not becoming dirty so rapidly as the Venetian blinds now on the market and of being more easily cleaned.

The-film covers maybe usedto renovate the appearance of used Venetian blinds that 'are vtoo costly to discard as soon as the blinds become soiled, frayed, or otherwise undesirable. vThe film covers may be manufactured at a fairly reasonable cost, hence may be discarded and replaced relatively inexpensively with new ones which may be selected to create a somewhat different appearance in a room and thereby relieve a monotonous sameness. In some cases the nlm covers may be put directly on the slats of a new Venetian Thus an otherwise monotonously blind in order to preserve and also render the same more attractive.

Having now described fully my invention, it will be understood that I do not wish to be limited as to the scope of the invention other than by the spirit of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. As an article of manufacture, a cover for the slat of a Venetian blind, comprising a durable and somewhat elastic, removable, plasticized, nonbrous, exible film covering.

2. As an article of manufacture, a cover for the slat of a Venetian blind, comprising a durable and somewhat elastic, removable, plasticized, nonbrous, flexible film covering characteristically adapted to fit the slat snugly without producing warpage of the slat.

3. As an article of manufacture, a cover for the slat of a Venetian blind, comprising a durable and somewhat elastic, removable, plasticized, exible synthetic resin film covering.

4. As an article of manufacture, a cover for the slat of a Venetian blind, consisting of a removable,

partially collapsed one-piece tube, having substantially the same length and dimensions as the slat to be covered, said tube being comprised of a durable and somewhat elastic, flexible, nonfibrous film. l

5. As an article of manufacture, a'slat for Venetian blind, consisting of a Slat-shaped member enveloped in a removable covering of a durable and somewhat elastic, flexible, plasticized, non-fibrous film.

6. As an article of manufacture, a cover for the y slat of a Venetian blind, comprising essentially a durable and somewhat elastic, non-fibrous, flexible, polyamide resin film covering.

7. As an article of manufacture, a cover for the slat of a Venetian blind, comprising a durable and somewhat elastic, plasticized, non-fibrous, flexible ethyl cellulose film covering.

' 8. As an article of manufacture, a cover for the slat of a Venetian blind, comprising a rubber hydrochloride film covering.

PATRICK H. DOUGHERTY. 

